Collide
by SkywardShadow
Summary: What was. What might have been. What is. What might still be. Naruto, Sasuke, and bonds. -Series of oneshots- -Complete-
1. I'm open you're closed

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or 'Collide' by Howie Day.

**A/N: I don't think any of these are gonna be connected to one another. There will be **_**spoilers**_**. There will be much AU. There will be **_**improbable**_** and **_**impossible**_** situations. Keeping that in mind, please enjoy. **

**..I..**

"I want you to stop Uchiha Sasuke's execution."

The members of Hawk froze.

The bespectacled redhead turned to her crush. "You know him?" she asked at the same time the white-haired boy said, "Execution?"

The youngest Uchiha motioned for them to be quiet. The last thing they needed was to be caught here.

The Raikage's entourage appeared less than moved. "You're still on about that?!" a dark-skinned kunoichi exclaimed, incredulous. "I can't believe you came all this way for that," groaned her partner.

"I know it's a lot to ask, but I have to try!" Naruto yelled. "Sasuke is my friend! I can't sit back and watch him be killed!"

Sasuke felt the stares of his new teammates boring into his head and avoided eye contact. His own eyes narrowed. _Idiot._ Why wouldn't he give it up already?

"I don't want Sasuke to cause a war between Konoha and Kumo!" the loudmouth ninja was saying. "I don't want either of us to be caught up in revenge!"

The Raikage uttered a disinterested "Let's go" to his followers and started moving, but Naruto apparently wasn't finished. He dropped to his knees.

Years of shinobi study kept Sasuke's shock from showing on his face. Naruto was one of the proudest people he had met in his life, and yet here he was. Pleading for Sasuke's life.

"I'm begging you!" the blond yelled. "I don't want anyone else getting killed for revenge! All Sasuke ever thought about was revenge-it changed him! It consumed him and drove him mad! He's not the same guy I knew anymore!"

Sounding pained now, he finished. "I don't want that to happen to anyone else!" He choked on what sounded like tears. "So..please.."

There was silence for a few moments, during which it seemed as though nobody breathed. The Raikage shattered the silence with his usual bluntness.

"I will kill Uchiha Sasuke!" he thundered. "It is up to you to ensure it ends there!"

He and his entourage stalked off.

"Naruto.." Kakashi's voice; firm, but not unkind. "Get up. That's enough."

He helped his sobbing former student up, and the Konoha ninja left as well. Quiet descended once more upon the clearing.

From their hiding place, the Hawk members simultaneously exhaled. Three of them shifted to look at their leader.

"Sasuke?" Jugo began hesitantly. Suigetsu chose a more direct approach: "What the _hell_?"

"Who _was_ that?" Karin inquired, frowning at the odd look on the Uchiha's face.

Sasuke blinked, smoothed out his features again, and stood.

"Nothing." His voice was icy, a warning that the one who pressed him further would die a painful death.

"But-" Karin ignored the warning and tried to protest, but Sasuke cut her off.

"It was _nothing_," he growled, "of importance." A pause. He took a breath.

"Let's go."

**..Fin..**


	2. Where I follow you'll go

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Nothing, I tell you!

**A/N: 2/12. Review/alert/favorite count is at zero. Huh, maybe the point of these **_**is**_** too ambiguous..oh well. I enjoy writing them.**

**..II..**

"_Are you all right, scaredy-cat?"_

"_When I'm with you, I think maybe that's what it's like to have a brother."_

"_You've become my closest friend."_

"_Why didn't you just kill me?!"_

"_Now you'll die at my whim."_

"_SASUKE!"_

Naruto's eyes flew open.

_The hell..? What was __**that**__?_

He forced himself to take deep breaths. His gaze stayed fixed on the nondescript white ceiling of another's bedroom; this was a sleepover, after all. He was cold, but he could feel sweat soaking into the fabric of his squashy orange sleeping bag.

Realizing his heart was still pounding at a mile a minute, he sat up. He strained his neck to look at the digital clock on the bedside table. It was almost five AM, but he felt more awake than ever, as if he'd been shocked.

But by what? _Must've been a dream_, he figured. _A nightmare..?_ No. Naruto mentally stretched out, reaching for the last fading traces of the dream. _It wasn't a nightmare. _

Or was it? He knew it hadn't been the stereotypical nightmare; no monsters, no blood, no running away, no falling off a cliff, etc. But there had been sadness. And there had been pain.

_There was a lot of pain…_

"…Naruto?"

The blond jumped and looked up. Sasuke had sat up in his bed, and was now focusing on his friend with a look of sleepy concern. Naruto was impressed; usually it took nothing short of a foghorn to wrest Sasuke from sleep, and the brunet was often a zombie for hours afterward anyway.

"Wha's wrong?" The Uchiha's words were slurred; his brain wasn't connecting properly at this time of night. Or was it the morning..

"Ah..nothing," Naruto answered. And indeed, the last remnants of whatever his subconscious had come up with were vanishing at a surprisingly quick rate. He could remember almost nothing of it now.

Sasuke shrugged, not about to turn down an opportunity to go back to sleep, and collapsed back onto his pillow.

Naruto laid back down, but his eyes didn't close. Something was nagging at him; something he felt like he should know, like he should _remember_, but somehow couldn't. Tiny, tattered shreds of forgotten memories and dreams lingered at the edges of his mind, just out of reach; he could glean nothing from them but a strange and profound sense of loss.

And words, here and there.

"_I won't let him have you!"_

_What?_

Exhaustion swept over Naruto like a sudden tidal wave, and before he could ponder the last thing he could recall, he slept.

By morning, he remembered nothing.

**..Fin..**


	3. I worry I won't see your face

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

**A/N: My thanks to RedTile for Alerting; I really appreciate it. ^.^ 3/12. **

**..III..**

Naruto, if asked, could recall a handful of moments-special moments-where he had been truly and purely happy.

His graduation from the Academy had to be one. Sasuke's return to Konoha was definitely another. And this…this was a third.

"This" being his marriage to Sakura. He'd asked, and she said yes.

He straightened his tie with a gulp and turned away from the mirror. His best man, leaning against the wall, rolled his eyes and held up a few fingers, mentally counting down.

_Three, two, one…_

With a strangled noise, Naruto whipped around furiously to face the mirror, certain once again that his tie had somehow un-straightened itself. It hadn't. Of course.

"All right!" the blond exclaimed to no one in particular. He turned to the man leaning against the wall. "Sasuke, how do I look?" He swallowed hard and braced himself, knowing that the Uchiha would be brutally honest.

Sasuke closed his eyes and tried to refrain from punching the other man's lights out. "As I told you the last time, and the time before, _and_ the time before that, _you look fine_. And yes," he added, seeing Naruto's mouth open, "your tie is completely _straight_. Quit pestering me already."

Naruto stuck his tongue out. Sasuke rolled his eyes again, and Naruto turned to the door again, taking a moment to collect himself before he entered the main room of the church.

This was it. He was going to marry the love of his life (never mind how cheesy the line was; it was true). He was going to be with Sakura forever. It was a lot to take in.

He glanced back and saw that Sasuke had gone off somewhere. Naruto sighed. Sasuke had been acting strangely the last few months, ever since Sakura and Naruto had made their engagement public. He'd been short with his old teammates, and avoided them in the street when they were together. Sakura could only wrest monosyllabic words from him, and all of Naruto's attempts to converse were received with muttered, one-word remarks or complete silence. Sasuke was shutting them out, and the blond could not for the life of him figure out why.

Naruto shook his head. This was no time to be stressing out about that. It was his wedding day, and dammit, he was going to be _happy_! He shooed any thoughts of Sasuke far from his mind and put on a wide grin. _Here we go._

**..**

The wedding went without a hitch. In fact, it was even better than Naruto had expected it to be, and that was saying a lot.

All of their friends showed up. The entirety of the old Rookie Nine; Kakashi, who was kind enough to put away his book for the entire ceremony; all of the other Jonin; Iruka, who just about cried when Naruto said "I Do"; the Sand Siblings, all of whom even cracked a smile when the vows were spoken, a feat in itself; Konohamaru, who had carried the rings and dropped them twice.

The bouquet tossed by Sakura was caught by her maid of honor, Ino, who immediately shot Sasuke a hopeful (and ignored) look. Sasuke who, incidentally, had dropped back in on Naruto right before the ceremony started and muttered a "Congratulations, dobe" in his ear before going back to his place.

Yes, everything was going perfectly. The party was now in full swing; Gai was cheering about youth, everyone was dancing, and a security detail stationed around the alcohol made sure that Rock Lee got none.

There was one thing nagging at him, though he ignored it for the most part. Naruto had noticed something odd right at the end of the ceremony, and resolved to pretend he hadn't.

But for a while, the blond had to wonder why Sasuke had so resolutely turned away when Naruto kissed Sakura.

**..Fin..**


	4. Light up again

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

**A/N: You guys spoil me. Arigato gozaimasu Rizera, xXMikomiUchihaXx and SecretAgentX! 4/12..we're a third of the way through..**

**..IV..**

"Hey, Sasuke!"

The whisper came in the middle of a math test. Uchiha Sasuke frowned. He knew the owner of the voice-hyperactive blond, prankster, and resident pain in his neck Uzumaki Naruto. Who also happened to be his best friend. But 'pain in the neck' was more all-encompassing.

The brunet glanced at the teacher to make sure he wasn't paying attention (which he wasn't-he had his nose buried in that suspicious orange book, as usual), and turned slightly so Naruto, who sat directly behind him, could hear.

"What do you want?"

Naruto looked like he wanted to respond with a snappy retort, but apparently decided there was a bigger issue at stake and stayed on target.

"Er..Would you mind leaning to the right a bit?"

"…Why?"

"I want to cheat off your test," Naruto replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "You're already finished, there are five minutes left in the class, and I don't even know what half these questions are talking about!"

Sasuke couldn't believe his ears. "Kakashi gave us a week's advance notice for this test," he muttered out of the corner of his mouth. "You're telling me you didn't study in all that time?!"

"Didn't even crack a book," was the matter-of-fact reply. Sensing that Sasuke was about to say it was his own fault, he quickly reverted to good old-fashioned pleading. "C'mon, Sasuke, be a pal! Just this once, _pleeease_?"

Sasuke shook his head and turned to face his own paper. Naruto scowled, but the scowl melted into an evil grin after a few seconds.

"Sasuke," he hissed. Sasuke grumbled, showing the blond had his attention.

Naruto's grin widened. "Help me out or I'll tell everyone on the track team that you use a full bottle of hair gel on that duck-butt style of yours."

Sasuke turned a bit, glaring. "I do _not_ use gel. And you're one to talk about weird appearances; you look like you've been brutally assaulted with ten cans of orange paint."

Waving the clothing comment aside, Naruto pressed, "_I_ know you don't use gel. But nobody _else_ does. You know people around here'll believe anything."

"…" Unbelievable. He was being blackmailed by the metaphorical village idiot, and with false evidence to boot… _Wait._

He growled a "Fine, just let me fix something" and leaned over to erase and rewrite a few answers on his test.

**..**

"Uzumaki Naruto, stay here please."

"Huh?" Naruto's head shot up as all his friends started to file out of the door. "Why?"

Sasuke smirked as their teacher beckoned, and decided to pack up his things very slowly; he couldn't miss this.

"It has come to my attention," the gray-haired man stated in his lazy drawl, "that you cheated on your math test."

The blond kept his face carefully blank. _He's good_, Sasuke observed. _But it won't save him_. Insert evil cackle here.

"Why would you think that?" Naruto inquired, the picture of innocence.

"Because," was the bemused reply. Kakashi held up two sheets of paper-Sasuke's math test, and Naruto's. "Your answers are identical to Sasuke's. Including the wrong ones."

Naruto's jaw hit the floor. "You've gotta be kidding me! _Wrong_ ones-Sasuke _never_ gets this crap wrong!"

"I believe you just effectively incriminated yourself," Kakashi said cheerily. "I'll see you this evening for your detention, then."

"Hang on!" the blond yelped. "What makes you think _he_ didn't cheat off of _me_?!"

"I shouldn't have to dignify that with an answer. But for one, Sasuke sits in front of you."

The wheels were obviously turning in Naruto's head; realizing something, he turned furiously to Sasuke. "You! You set me up!" he yelled angrily. "You let me cheat off of you knowing that-"

"I _let_ you cheat off of my test?" Sasuke interrupted, raising a slim eyebrow. "And why on earth would I do that?"

The livid attack that resulted earned Naruto enough detentions for a month.

**..Fin..**


	5. Even the best fall down sometimes

Disclaimer: Don't own. Don't sue.

**A/N: TYVM to Rizera and xXMikomiUchihaXx for reviewing, and also to AoiYume-sama for Alerting. I appreciate it. ^^ And this is the same story previously titled 'Your Eden'; the title and chapter names have just been changed. 5/12.**

**..V..**

"Agh!"

The seven-year-old's strangled yell of frustration seemed to echo throughout the training grounds behind the Academy. All of the other students paused in their sparring and turned to look at him.

Sasuke blushed. _Great. This day just keeps getting better._

When Master Iruka had announced that they would work on Taijutsu by pairing off and sparring, no Nin- or Genjutsu allowed, Sasuke thought he'd be able to pull it off, no sweat. His confidence doubled when his partner turned out to be the loud class clown with the yellow hair, Naruto something-or-other, who never seemed to do anything productive during classes. Taijutsu had never been the Uchiha's forte, exactly, but he was sure he could win against the guy everyone called an idiot. Besides, he'd been practicing hard.

He'd won the first round quickly. But then in the second round, Naruto came back to beat him just as quickly. Sasuke nervously chalked it up to luck, and a lack of concentration on his own part, but then his opponent had gone on to win round three as well. And the one after that. And this most recent one too.

This was infuriating. The Uchiha couldn't even quite pin down what it was about Naruto's fighting style that tripped him up; it was just so..erratic. His movements were jerky and overly energetic and made no strategic sense whatsoever, yet they helped him beat Sasuke over and over.

And now, on top of everything else, he'd yelled and made a moron out of himself. _I just hope Father doesn't hear about this._

Master Iruka turned everyone's attention back to their own matches, leaving only one pair of big blue eyes to stare at Sasuke.

"Umm..You okay?" the other seven-year-old ventured cautiously. "I didn't actually hurt you or anything, did I?"

He seemed genuinely concerned, and that made Sasuke even more irritated. The last thing he needed was the pity of this blond fool.

"No," was the waspish reply. "I'm fine."

Naruto flinched a little at the harshness in the other's tone, but he pressed anyway. "You don't always have to be the best at _everything_, y'know."

_Yes, I do!_ "What do _you_ know?" Sasuke snapped. "You don't know anything about me!"

Naruto shrugged, apparently unfazed. "Everyone screws up sometimes. Nobody 's perfect, right?" He grinned. "'Sides, if you never got beaten, you'd never get better, and that would suck."

Sasuke blinked. "..You're weird," he decided.

The grin grew. "And proud of it, believe it!"

Sasuke gave a small smile, and slipped back into a fighting stance.

"Come on," he said in response to Naruto's perplexed look. "Let's have another go."

**..Fin..**


	6. Even the wrong words seem to rhyme

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

**A/N: Thank you very much, Rizera and RPWriters; I seriously appreciate your support. ^^ I'm not sure how I feel about this one, but whatever. 6/12; we're halfway there..**

**..VI..**

The blonde girl fidgeted as she tried to find the courage to get the words out.

"Umm, Dad? I was wondering if maybe I could –"

**..**

"-go out tomorrow night."

Sasuke blinked down at his son, who had recently turned fifteen, in confusion.

"You go out by yourself all the time," he pointed out. "Why are you asking me now?"

Omi swallowed visibly and hoped his father couldn't see that he was sweating. "Well, uh, I..I wouldn't be-"

..

"-by myself, exactly," Misao explained, quaking as she awaited her father's reaction.

Naruto cocked his head sideways. "What's that supposed to mean?" he inquired, curious. His daughter wasn't usually one to beat around the bush.

Misao actually felt herself turn green. _Oh, great..now I have to spell it out for him.._ She took a very deep breath and spoke again. "Um, y'see, this time it'd be more of-"

**..**

"-a date," Omi blurted out, suddenly feeling nauseous.

Sasuke choked on his rice.

"A _what_?!" he exclaimed once he got himself under control.

Omi gulped again. _Don't throw up..don't throw up…_ "A-"

**..**

"-date," Misao said firmly.

It took a few seconds for Naruto to make the connection. When his daughter's statement finally hit home, he spat ramen all over the table.

"You're _kidding_ me!" he yelped in horror, frantically scrambling for napkins so he could clean up the mess before his wife saw it and killed him. "With-"

**..**

"-_who_?!" Sasuke managed.

Omi whimpered a little. _This is it._ Everything else was child's play compared to the bombshell he was about to dump on his hapless father.

"With Misao."

**..**

"With Omi," Misao answered. She watched the blood drain from her father's face as he froze.

"You mean…_Sasuke's_ kid?!"

**..**

"_Naruto's daughter_?!"

Omi tried his best not to cower. "Well-"

**..**

"-yes," Misao replied helplessly.

Naruto dropped everything he was holding and bolted outside, ran to Sasuke's house and just about broke the door down.

"_Sasukeeee_!" he yelled. "I am so going to-"

**..**

"-kill him if he breaks my door," Sasuke grumbled, and let his old friend in. "What do you want?" he snapped.

"Your kid!" Naruto hissed. "_Your kid_ is going out with _my daughter_!"

"Well, your daughter is going out with my son, apparently," Sasuke responded irritably. "I don't like it any more than you do."

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?! You don't think Misao is _good_ enough, or something?!" was the furious and immediate response.

Sasuke looked at the ceiling and counted to twenty. Then, "You're being ridiculous."

"_I'm_ being ridiculous!"

"Yes. Yes, you are. I have no problem with Misao-"

"You better not!"

"Will you shut up and let me finish, dobe?"

"Don't tell me to shut up, teme!"

"You-"

**..**

Omi slipped from the house and sneaked over to Ichiraku's, where a familiar blonde was waiting for him. "Hey, Misao," he greeted her shyly. "Thank god for backup plans, huh?"

Misao rolled her eyes. "Actually, I would've been shocked if we _didn't_ have to sneak out. C'mon, we both knew our dads were gonna go nuclear. Guess it's kind of a good thing they argue so much, ne?"

Omi grinned. "Yeah, I guess it is."

**..Fin..**


	7. Out of the doubt that fills my mind

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

**A/N: My thanks to Modest Truth and Rizera; you guys rock my socks. ^^ 7/12. Dattebayo.**

**..VII..**

"Traitor."

Sasuke heard the distinct mutter as he walked by one shop or another, but he'd learned by now not to say anything.

Back when he'd first been let off house arrest-after his failed defection attempt a year ago-he would've jumped on whoever called him a traitor. A fight would've started. And he would've been arrested all over again. Yes, back then, that had happened a lot.

Now he knew better. No words or fists could change anyone's mind about him. Besides, it wasn't like they were wrong. He had done his very best to leave Konoha, and despite his resounding failure, there were many in the village who were sure he would try it again. Kakashi was constantly watching him, and whenever Sakura met his eyes he could see her fear, her fear that he might vanish. Pretty much anyone who had had any faith him before would never trust him again.

"Oy, teme!"

He blinked, but made no move to slow down. Well..maybe there was _one_ person who hadn't changed their tune. Naruto still remained as bouncy and energetic as ever. If anything, his pride and optimism had grown since he'd dragged a half-conscious Sasuke back to Konoha last year.

"What's up?" the blond inquired as he caught up to his teammate. "You look depressing even for you."

Sasuke resisted the urge to punch him. Barely. "Nothing."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Right, I forgot. It's always 'nothing' with you. Lemme rephrase: what _isn't_ up?"

"Nothing," the Uchiha repeated.

"Aha, so something _is_ up!"

"I am not above starting a fight with you in the middle of the village, dobe."

Apparently not in the mood to cause a big scene (which was rare), Naruto settled for sticking his tongue out instead of reacting violently to the 'dobe' comment.

"So what _is_ wrong with you?" was the conversational question brought up less than two minutes later.

Sasuke closed his eyes and prayed for patience. Naruto hadn't been avoiding making a scene; he was just picking his battles.

"It's not-look, people are talking. That's all. No big deal."

One look at the sudden understanding expression on Naruto's face, and he could've smacked himself. What had possessed him to admit to anything?!

He started walking again, at a quicker pace.

Naruto was back at his side faster than you can say 'annoying and hyperactive'.

"Talking? About..you?"

_If they weren't talking about me, then why would I care?_ Sasuke thought irritably. Naruto chose to take his silence as an affirmative and plowed on.

"Look, I..I know it's tough when people are saying stuff behind your back. You just wanna punch their lights out. But.." His tone turned sheepish. "I know this is a cliché, but if you just don't let it get to you..uh, I won't say it makes the talking any easier to take, but it keeps people from taking things any further. I mean, what do they know, right?"

An awkward silence, followed by an awkward laugh from the blond.

"Ah..did that even make sense?"

'_What do they know'?..Hn. The dolt has a point..though I'm not even sure what it is.._

Sasuke stopped so abruptly that Naruto walked right past him before realizing. They looked at each other for a second before Sasuke stated, in his usual apathetic tone, "Yeah, I think it did."

Naruto's face broke into his trademark grin. "Good."

Sasuke smirked, the closest he could bring himself to a smile, and nodded.

**..Fin..**


	8. I finally find

Disclaimer: I own nooothiiiing…

**A/N: TYVM to Rizera, Kasumi9-9, hakuisagirl, SecretAgentX, Modest Truth and AntiExo-Politician. ^^ 8/12..these are going by **_**fast**_**...**

**..VIII…**

"…And this is the part where I wait for you to say 'Just kidding'," Sasuke said dryly.

Naruto blinked, apparently oblivious to the extent of the trouble he was in. "Why would I be kidding? I've been planning this for weeks. I've worked out an arrangement with Hinata at the pet place, and she says I can give a few animals a 'trial run' until I find the one that's right for me." He grinned.

Sasuke stared at his roommate, incredulous. "Have you finally lost your mind?" he asked.

Naruto's grin faded into a confused frown. "What? I want a pet; is it _that_ big a deal?"

"It is," was the tight reply, "seeing as one: I live here too, and two: you didn't consult me."

The blond snorted. "_Consult_ you? Who do you think you are, my mother?"

"No, but I _am_ stuck in this room with you; therefore, my opinion matters. And my opinion is that you get rid of it. _Now_."

Most people would jump at that tone, but Naruto merely rolled his eyes. "Yeah, fine. Your ridiculous little opinion has been duly noted…and overruled. Teme, meet our new roommate!"

Sasuke glanced down to scowl at the little cat. Under different circumstances-say, after every bit of Uchiha pride had been sapped from his system-he might've thought the cat almost cute. She was a brighter orange than could possibly be natural, with pointed ears and a bushy tail. All in all, she looked practically foxlike.

"Her name is Kitsu," Naruto announced proudly. "C'mon, admit it, you know she's cute."

_Admit it? Not on your life._ "I couldn't care less what you choose to name your animals," Sasuke ground out. "But you know what? I have a class to get to, and I don't really have time to argue with you, so fine. Run yourself ragged with whatever exotic creature you choose; we'll see who's laughing then. Keep it _away_ from my side of the room, though, or I will kill you. Painfully."

And with that, he stalked out.

**..**

At the very least, Naruto appeared to have taken his roommate's final words to heart, because there was no cat fur on any of the Uchiha's furniture or possessions when he returned. Sasuke took one look at the event occurring in the blond's half of the room and, smirking, sat down to watch the show.

Naruto, he observed with amusement, had decided to clip the cat's nails in order to avoid being shredded in his sleep. Kitsu, however, was having none of it. The result was what basically looked like a wrestling match, one that Naruto was on the losing side of. Every bit of him, as far as Sasuke could tell, had been marred with an angry red scratch, courtesy of his precious pet.

"Sasuke!" Naruto exclaimed upon noticing him roommate. Sasuke waved, his smirk growing more sardonic by the second.

"Hey," the younger boy panted, struggling to keep his hold on the animal, "I could use a little help here!"

"Oh really?" A slim black eyebrow was raised. "Well that's sad, isn't it? Too bad, dead last; I refuse to get involved with your animals."

Naruto shot him a furious glare as Kitsu raised her claw for another attack. "You ba-OW!"

**..**

Kitsu was gone by the next morning. Satisfied that Naruto had given up his pointless venture, Sasuke went about the day as usual.

When he returned to his room, however, something was distinctly off. After a moment he realized what it was: there was a small black dog ripping his pillow to shreds.

His thoughts immediately became something along the lines of _Kill. Kill. I want __**blood**__._

Naruto, sitting on his own bed, looked up with an innocent smile. "Oh hey, Sasuke!" he said cheerfully. "I decided a cat wasn't the pet for me, so I traded Kitsu in for this little guy." He sent the puppy a fond look. "His name's Tsune."

"And your name will be on a headstone if you don't get that ball of fur off of my bed in the next three seconds."

Naruto eyed the newly sharpened pencil in the Uchiha's hand and decided he felt like living another day. He retrieved the dog, but the damage was done.

"I thought I told you," Sasuke said coldly, "to keep your pets _away_ from my side of the room."

"No," Naruto corrected. "You said to keep _'it'_ away, which at the time meant Kitsu. Tsune, obviously, is a totally unrelated matter." He grinned, pleased with himself.

"That doesn't mean I won't skin both of you alive if I see him anywhere near my bed again," was the hissed reply.

Tsune barked. Sasuke scowled.

But karma, he would later note, was a beautiful thing. Apparently Tsune had decided he didn't like Sasuke at all, and therefore took it upon himself to protect his master by barking whenever he caught sight of the black-haired boy.

And as such, he barked all night long. Sasuke had been proven capable of sleeping right through World War Three, but Naruto was a relatively light sleeper.

Needless to say, little Tsune was gone before lunch the next day.

**..**

This time, Sasuke entered the room with caution. He wasn't sure if it was too much to hope for that the blond idiot had given up by now.

The room appeared quiet and empty. Sasuke didn't hear any irksome mewls or yaps; a close examination of his bed sheets and new pillow revealed no hair or fur.

With a sigh of relief, he collapsed on his bed, and after a few seconds twisted and reached under said bed to get the book he'd been reading.

His hands hit something scaly.

With something that might've been a yelp he hurriedly yanked his hand back for fear that this newest annoyance would chew his fingers off. Naruto chose this moment to make his entrance.

"Narutoooo," Sasuke growled. "_What_ is under my bed?"

"How should I know?" was the perplexed reply.

The Uchiha narrowed his eyes and slowly bent over to get a good look at the lurking creature. It looked like a relative of Godzilla, to be honest.

"Oh, that's Ryu. He's a Komodo dragon," Naruto explained proudly.

"Oh, is that all," Sasuke grumbled.

"Yup! Cool, huh?"

The Uchiha only groaned. _What did I ever do to deserve this?_

That night, Sasuke had some trouble falling asleep. Naruto didn't have a leash or a cage or whatever a Komodo dragon was usually restrained by; who knew what it could do? He finally conked out, but was awoken what felt like minutes later by the feel and smell of hot breath on his face. His eyes opened to an expressionless reptile.

"AGH!" he yelled, falling backwards off the bed in his attempt to put distance between them. From the floor he utilized his most vicious Uchiha Death Glare, first at a dispassionate Ryu, then at a still-sleeping Naruto.

_I've just about had enough of this,_ Sasuke thought irritably. Figuring it was illogical and too tired to care, he stood, picked up Ryu (God, that thing was _heavy_!), and dropped him on Naruto's stomach.

"Gah!" the blond yelped, waking up instantly. He shoved the lizard off of himself and clutched his stomach in pain. As the pain receded, his eyes narrowed as he connected the dots. "_Teme_! What gives?!"

There was no answer. A satisfied Sasuke had gone back to sleep.

**..**

Ryu had proved himself an effective weapon in Sasuke's campaign against pets, and for that reason he was gone in less than 24 hours. The Uchiha prayed the ache in Naruto's stomach would remind him that animals were a bad idea.

But since when had Naruto ever been one to take a hint? The latest pet arrived more quickly than any of the previous ones. Sasuke opened the door to see a white cockatoo in a cage, and Naruto grinning at it from his bed.

"His hair looks _exactly_ like yours, you know that?" the blond observed cheerily.

Sasuke ignored him. "If that thing messes with my life or my half of the room in any way, you can consider yourself a dead man," he remarked coolly.

"Whatever," was the disinterested reply. "Man..he's a cool-looking bird, isn't he?"

Sasuke plopped down on his bed and opened a book, a grunt being his only response.

"Oh, right; almost forgot..I gotta clip his wings," he heard the dobe mutter to himself. In the next few seconds Sasuke heard a cage door open, followed by a sudden wild flapping of wings and a loud screeching. And, of course, the yells of a certain idiot. Sasuke smiled and closed his eyes, listening to the chaotic symphony with perverse pleasure.

"Ack! It's attacking me-calm down, nice birdie-_agh_! It-teme, would you mind helping a guy out?! _Ouch_! Stupid bird, quit-ahh, it's gonna escape-_Sasuke!_"

The Uchiha's eyes opened as wings brushed his head; he caught a brief glimpse of the bird before it flew out the open window.

Naruto groaned. "Aw, great! How am I gonna explain this to Hinata?!"

Sasuke just smirked.

**..**

Naruto slunk into the room he shared with Sasuke that with every intention of curling up on the bed and dying. Hinata had called in sick, so he had been forced to explain the whole mess to Sakura, and, well-long story short, he was going to be very sore in the morning.

He sank onto the bed, turned sideways, and blinked. Sitting on the bedside table was a bowl filled with clear water, and housing a bright goldfish. A note was propped up against the bowl. He picked it up.

_Apparently his name's 'Fishcake'. Someone in that pet shop has a diabolical sense of humor._

_Buy the fish food yourself; I'm not that generous._

_Think you can handle this one, dobe?_

Naruto scowled.

**..Fin..**


	9. You and I Collide

Disclaimer: Don't own. Don't sue.

**A/N: TYVM Rizera. And many thanks to Modest Truth for prompting this chap. 9/12.**

**..IX..**

This is it. They both know it.

The end has been coming for years-longer than either of them have been alive.

_It started with Madara and Hashirama. Senju and Uchiha._

The karma and the cycle. The wheel that never stopped turning. The misfortune that changed forms-it was a raging fox demon and then a murdered clan; a fought-for seat of power and a planned rebellion. It was vicious fight after vicious fight; pain and then retaliation, over and over.

_("You're one of the ones I want to fight.")_

They have been _chosen_, an old man says. Given the honor and privilege to put an end to the blood feud their ancestors began, singled out to kill each other and win both the game and the glory. They are the most recent pawns and casualties of this war that has been brewing beneath the surface for so, so long.

_("I've become..your closest friend?")_

One was a wind-up toy, wound by his motivation and his misplaced hatred; turned one way by a fake brother, then turned right around by an elderly demon. He walked all the way, then turned and started walking all the way back.

One was a product of hardship and resolution, stubborn and firm and unwilling to let go of those close. A rag doll to some extent; a resilient one, but one all the same. Battered and torn by his feelings and the feelings of others, nearly ruined time and again by his sentimentality.

Toys, both of them. Just links in a chain; adjacent and opposite at the same time.

_("I will make you fight each other.")_

Their elders began all of it. A Hokage and a spurned leader; head of a village and head of a clan that was now bitter and vengeful. Spite and hate and mistakes and lies; the foundations of a steady build-up of anger. Anger lead to blood as it so often does; and for the missteps of those past, the younger ones will suffer.

Because that is their man-made destiny; their forced duty labeled 'dogma' by one who can but will not end things himself.

_("You…were chosen.")_

Black and blue gazes collide; many words are conveyed yet left unspoken, and sparks of a different nature than romanticized fly unchecked.

There are no other living creatures in sight; yet a hundred birds chirp, and then a sphere materializes in a bloodied hand.

There is some regret in them, the two friends who lunge at each other with resignation; but they push it aside because the madness has to end, and it will end now, because that is their fate. It always has been.

It was always going to end like this, and some part of them knew that.

_It ended with Naruto and Sasuke. The cycle was stopped, and somebody cried._

**..Fin..**


	10. Don't stop here

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Don't you dare sue me!

**A/N: Thanks to Rizera and vwbuba! Appreciate it! ^^ Dunno how this one came out..well, I can always blame it on tiredness. 10/12.**

**..X..**

_Uchiha Sasuke has joined Orochimaru. He resides in the Sannin's dank hideouts now, hidden away from the sunlight like the snake his new sensei is._

_His training is stringent and difficult, but he is improving by leaps and bounds._

_For his favorite pet's fifteenth birthday, Orochimaru gives him a katana, a special one that conducts lightning. A fine piece of metalwork. The weight of the weapon at his side is something he gets used to, after a while._

**..**

"..waving his arm around again. Like he's wielding a sword."

"A _sword_? What the hell?!"

**..**

_He kills his deluded master and starts his own cell, freeing prisoners and gaining their cooperation. Jugo, Karin, and Suigetsu-his new team, the means to reach his end. His goal. Itachi-more specifically, Itachi's death._

_The day when he feels his elder brother's blood all over his hands is close in coming; he can almost smell it. The blood will be a warm and sticky way of remembering his brother and what a lowlife dirtbag he was._

_The day will be soon. He smiles at the thought._

**..**

"Ugh, that smile is _creepy_."

"That's a smile?"

"It's what passes for one with him."

"Ah."

**..**

_He kills his brother, and something inside of him dies._

_Especially after he learns-after he **learns**-_

**..**

"Ah, God-someone shut him _up_!"

"He's screaming so damn _loud_; just listen to him…I wonder what he's seeing?"

**..**

_Ohgodohgodohgodohgod Itachi's dead and I killed him and he's gonehe'sgonehe'sgone and oh my god he was innocent it was all a lie and **what have I done**?!-_

**..**

"Looks like he's having a seizure."

"Jeez. He's been like that for-what, twelve hours now? Shaking and moaning and crying..what is going _on_ inside this kid's head?!"

"Beats me.."

**..**

_He destroys his village. He makes them pay for what they have done._

_He's used his eyes, his last gift from Itachi, too much; his sight is darkening fast and he feels tears of blood pouring from his eyes. _

_Vision fading. He closes his eyes. He would rather have the blackness of his own eyelids be the last thing imprinted on his mind. He doesn't want to see it anymore-the dead village, the dead people-_

_And Naruto, Naruto, he killed him too; the blond is dead and gone just like Itachi so what is keeping him bound to this world? Nothing-nothing but this damn heart that just keeps beating and beating and beating..._

**..**

"Holy f—are his eyes _bleeding_?!"

"Damn, I think they are. This is bad-call Shizune!"

"Don't need to tell me twice."

**..**

_He is dying as well and he is happy._

**..**

"Oy, guys!"

"Hey, Naruto."

"How is he?!"

"You ask that every single time..if something changed for the better, we'd call you."

"Well, yeah, but…"

"Look, Naruto..he's been like this for _years_. Since he hit his head during the Chunin exams, remember?"

"How could I forget? Ever since then he's been in his own freaking world.."

"Naruto..don't you think it's time you-"

"Shut it. You're going to tell me to give up on him, and I will _never_ do that. So save your breath."

**..**

…_That's a familiar voice. That's-wait, that's impossible, because he's dead and I killed him and-wait, what? Someone's touching me; I can feel them, but I can't see them-crap, what's going on?_

**..**

"Hey, teme…you've got everybody freaking out, y'know that? Making your eyes bleed and all..you should probably quit doing that, FYI; I don't think it's healthy, and the old lady agrees with me.."

..

_This is a joke, right? This is insane; I can't be hearing this, this is-_

_Wait, I remember something-something..different…if my head would just stop **pounding** for one frickin' second.._

**..**

"Sasuke..c'mon. Wake up already. You've been getting loads of attention for three years now, isn't that enough?"

**..**

_You have **got** to be fricking kidding._

_I-I've been…_

_Ah, **hell**!_

**..**

"..and..and…you..are you-SHIZUNE! Shizune he's opening his eyes! _He's opening his eyes_!!"

"….Sh..shut up already..d..dobe.."

**..Fin..**


	11. I've lost my place

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Not being sued would make my day. ^.^

**A/N: Thank you Rizera, SecretAgentX and Modest Truth!! 11/12..it's almost over, wow..**

**..XI..**

"Hey, Naruto..are you still asleep?"

_Yeah, right. I wish._ His eyes force themselves open tiredly; he's been sleeping for awhile, he knows, but he's still exhausted.

Fuzzily at first, then with clarity, he makes out Sakura's weary-looking form sitting beside his bed. Her eyes are slightly red. This strikes him as odd.

_Wait..eyes..red eyes…_

"Sasuke!" he exclaims, sitting up so fast it almost hurts.

He doesn't notice his teammate's involuntary flinch; he just plows on. "We got him! We finally caught him! When's the trial set for?"

Sakura inhales shakily. "Naruto-"

"I swear if he tries to leave again I'm gonna chain him to the ground and leave 'im there until he comes to his senses, but-when are they going to hold the trial? I know that jerk Danzo's still standing in for Tsunade, but between us and Kakashi-sensei we can put together a good enough defense.."

"N-Naruto, please-"

"Jeez, it's gonna be unreal, having him back on Team Seven. Isn't it?" His already blinding smile grows exponentially. "Isn-isn't it, Sakura-cha…what's wrong?"

Sakura is crying.

"What is it?" He's gone from ecstatic to concerned in two seconds flat. Sakura isn't a crier anymore. She simply _doesn't_ break down. So something awful must have happened.

"N-Naruto, you..you've been out for almost a w-week," she manages, tears distorting the words. Naruto's eyes widen in disbelief.

"That long? Then-wait." There's a pause while some of the dots are hurriedly connected. He wants to meet her eye but somehow can't; focuses instead on his hands, bandaged and limp in his sheet-covered lap.

"The trial's already over, isn't it."

It isn't a question, but she still answers-answers with a sniff and a nod that isn't seen, but felt.

"And?"

He doesn't really want to know.

"Naruto, that isn't-" She almost cracks again; he can hear it in her breaking voice. "That isn't-" She can't, she can't..but she tries again.

"The t-trial was over in less than 48 hours," she croaks.

Tan fists clench around innocent fabric.

"I mean, h-he _attacked_ a K-_Kage_. It wasn't-we couldn't-" Her voice fails.

"Over? In less than two days? While I was out cold?" It's outrageous. It's outsane, insane, anything and everything but sane. It's incredibly far from fair…

Sakura nods again, like some morbid imitation of a bobblehead.

_It's true._

"And the sentence?" That voice is brittle and cold, stiff with unbearable fear. It take a minute for the fact that it belongs to _him_ to hit home.

A half-muffled sob.

It's answer enough, but he presses anyway. He actually feels the absence of blood in his face.

"What happened to him?" It's hardly even a whisper. "Where is Sasuke?"

There's a silence of a few seconds that lasts an eternity and cruelly lets him reflect on what was, what might have been, what could be-and most of all, _most of all_, what is-

"He's dead."

_-lost._

Gone, gone, now and forever, gone from the world, gone from Sakura, gone from Kakashi-sensei, gone from _him_.

Gone.

Fire-bright eyes, brilliant potential, and millions of hopeful possibilities-

Nothing left but ashes.

**..Fin..**


	12. I'm close behind

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

**A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who's had anything to do with this story (particularly Modest Truth, Rizera, Moth Gypsy and SecretAgentX). Your support means a lot to me; thanks. :D 12/12..here we go.**

**..XII..**

"Still can't believe it."

"You and me both, loser."

"Thanks for the support."

"My pleasure."

"Man..I actually did it. I'm…I'm the Hokage. This is _real_."

"Of course it's real, you moron. And for the record I don't care what title they give you; you are still a moron."

"Shut up, you jerk! I'm trying to enjoy the fulfillment of my dream here!"

"Hn."

"What?"

"You chose me of all people to be your bodyguard."

"Uh, yeah. Your point?"

"People aren't going to like it."

"Like I give a-"

"They don't trust me."

"Well, you did kinda screw us all over. Multiple times. But you're back now."

"And that's enough to make you trust me? With your _life_?"

"Yeah, it is. Because we're friends, in case you haven't picked that up. I trust you with my life because we're _friends_. Jeez. Now can it and let me savor the moment."

"…"

"Thank you."

"..You do realize how many times I attempted to kill you?"

"Damn. I knew the silence couldn't last."

"Shut up and listen to me already."

"I _have_ been listening, unfortunately."

"I would have killed you."

"Would you?"

"…."

"_Would_ you?"

"….No."

"What was that?"

"Wipe that stupid smirk off your face before I do it for you. I said no, I wouldn't have. Satisfied?"

"Yup."

"Tch."

"Heh..I just realized that you have to do anything I say now, Sasuke."

"Bite me."

"Hey, I'm the Hokage! You can't undermine my authority!"

"I can when you're being an idiot, which is pretty much always. The day I take orders from you will be a freezing day in hell."

"Jerk!"

"Dead last."

"Teme!"

"Dobe."

**..Fin..**

**A/N: And that's how it is. Hope you enjoyed the ride.**


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